Just curious to see how many out there really did cheat.

This is just the thread I needed tonight. My surgery is in 10 days, and I'm on the Protein shake diet. The nurse said I could have one meal a day, and I admit I've been using that as a bit of a free pass to eat whatever I've been craving for that one meal.

JaxBandster's description of that liver is an image I won't easily forget. Tomorrow the tough love begins. My commitment needs to start now because I know it'll be a much bigger adjustment post-op.

I'm started my diet today and my surgery is on friday....I can tell right now its going to be tough going for the next two weeks. I'm suppose to be on all liquids....Any ideas?

Are you on full liquids or Clear Liquids? If you are on full liquids I would just watch the sodium and carb content in some of them, they can be quite high. Atkins Advantage Carb Control Proteins shakes are pretty good and filling. Have those for your meals. Ask your doctor if they have a list of things you can have.

This is just the thread I needed tonight. My surgery is in 10 days, and I'm on the Protein shake diet. The nurse said I could have one meal a day, and I admit I've been using that as a bit of a free pass to eat whatever I've been craving for that one meal.

JaxBandster's description of that liver is an image I won't easily forget. Tomorrow the tough love begins. My commitment needs to start now because I know it'll be a much bigger adjustment post-op.

Chick, sounds like your head is in the right place! Hope my description wasn't too disturbing, but to be honest, it was disturbing. I could definitely see why a doctor would close up a patient when they saw the liver in that condition.

This whole journey has been more effort than I initially thought it would be. I also initially thought that it was just a matter of eating less and that I could eat anything I wanted. I sure was mistaken! I still have to make good food choices, the only thing the band helps me with is portion control. But if I continuously feed it potatoes, rice, or ice cream, I'm not going to lose. I am now much more prepared to really dedicate myself to my band and this process. It won't be easy (because Lord knows I love my carbs!) but it's definitely going to be worth it!!!

Best of luck to you! Sounds like you are going to do great!!!!

Ok, I did great on my pre-op diet, no cheating. What really sucked though was that the whole time I was on my pre-op diet my insurance still hadn't decided if they were going to approve my surgery. That made it just a little more difficult because I kept thinking "What if I'm doing this for nothing?" Well, the day before my scheduled surgery the insurance company called and said they were denying the surgery. I was so upset but my doctor told me to go home and have a nice dinner. Well, I made homemade cheeseburgers with 93/7 lean ground beef and had two of them. The next morning at 8am the insurance company called me at work to tell me the medical director overruled the decision and my surgery was now approved!!! Well, I called my doctors office to reschedule my surgery and they told me literally, "If you can get your ass to the hospital today at noon we will do it today!" I was so excited but then I remembered I had eated the night before. The doctor said it shouldn't be a problem and after my surgery he said everything was perfect and he could tell I really stuck to the pre-op diet, (which was all liquids). He was very happy and said the surgery was easy. So to those who may have cheated a little, I wouldn't be worried as long as it was only once or twice maybe. Good Luck to Everyone!

Alison

Banded 2-13-08

I was banded 2/15 and as to your question, it never occured to me to cheat on my pre-op diet!

I was meant to be scheduled in to have my surgery on one date and turns out they actually didn't have me scheduled in at all! Needless to say my date was changed very quickly and I didn't have time to do the pre-op diet. My surgeon said that I wouldn't have a problem of my liver being enlarged because of my age so he was fine with skipping the pre-op diet!

My doc told me I should try to loose some weight before the surgery but he didn't mentioned why and I (stupid me) did not ask why, therefore I did not do much effort with that pre-op diet... only later on when reading and researching here at LBT I understood why they sometimes request we do that pre-op diet. It makes all sense so if you're told to do it, just stick to it and TRY doing it! Your doc knows best.

niki

I stuck to my pre-op diet, no cheating at all...I was proud of myself!!!

I don´t know if I´m going to be able to make it through the preop diet!

what happens If you don´t???

I cheated a little on the pre-op diet. I ate a few crackers and added extra protein shakes if I was still hungry. Even though I was careful, my liver was still fatty. I beleive this is because of the Metformin that I was taking for the PCOS. It is one of the side effects. I even stopped the Metformin during my diet so that I could stick to it easyer. I had lost a total of 18.6 lbs in the 2 weeks prior to surgery!

EAS has a great protein shake that tastes just like a vanilla milkshake.

im on my pre op diet and cheated the 2 day as i had a massive head ache due to not eating.. think my body went OMG wat r u doing to me.. so i had a peice of chicken... go in on tue and hoping he will say it wasnt fatty at all i been really good

I have been sticking to my pre-op diet of 3 pints of semi-skimmed milk,2 low fat yoghurts and 1 stock cube a day! Im on day 4,have 7 more days to go.Day 2 was the worst so far,headaches from hell. I am so worried of doing something that would prevent my banding to go ahead,that Im sticking to it 100%!!

Hi, I'm on day 7 of a 10 day pre-op diet. THIS SUCKS!!!!!!! I'm hungry. I think my husband couldn't wait to get away from me yesterday. But I think about it like this. I can be miserable for a few days, in that this is for the rest of my life. No cheating so far. Being banded on Thursday. Can't wait.

Hi,

The bariatric program that I attend doesn't require a pre-op liquid phase. The patient has to lose 15% of his/her excess body weight, but how you do it is up to the individual. They do give some patients medication to help lose the weight - only if not contraindicated medically.

They will not do surgery until you have lost the weight, however. The reason is a fatty liver. In the pre-op classes they explain even a few pounds make a big difference in the amount of fat around the liver.

The requirement was frustrating at times - but all in all I think it was a good idea. It helps you learn how to eat regular foods after the surgery.

The program I am attending is at Bassett Healthcare in Cooperstown, NY.

Molly A